Newsletter for Friday, Apr 01 2016

INSTAGRAM OF THE DAY

INSIDE BERNIE’S ‘YUGE’ PITTSBURGH RALLY YESTERDAY

Every time Bernie Sanders uttered the word “yuge,” in his Brooklyn-tinged accent (and he did it often), the audience at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center echoed it back to him. That was the mood as the Vermont senator made his first visit of the 2016 campaign stop in Pittsburgh: light and energetic, as he spoke before a crowd of screaming millennials who were definitely feeling the Bern. “Everyone in this room knows that real change never happens from the top down, it always goes from the bottom up,” Sanders told the gathering, to thunderous applause. “People stand up and say the status quo is not acceptable.” More than 8,000 people were inside the morning rally; here’s what went down.

INFANT SAFE AFTER KOP MALL KIDNAPPING

Get an Amber Alert last night? That was for a 7-week-old baby boy who was abducted from the food court area at the King of Prussia mall around 5:30 p.m. yesterday. NBC10 reports video surveillance showed a woman walking out of the mall with the infant, and the baby’s family reported to police that the woman had tried to befriend the family earlier in the night. Local police and the FBI stopped cars and buses heading out of the area and at 10:30 p.m. announced the baby had been found safe. The woman accused of kidnapping him is in custody.

DID A PENNSYLVANIA PROSECUTOR CATFISH DEFENDANTS ON FACEBOOK?

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s Disciplinary Board investigated Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller after rumors circulated she created a fake Facebook profile in a bid to obtain information about defendants her office was prosecuting, multiple sources confirmed to Billy Penn. Several defense attorneys in Centre County said whoever ran a Facebook account operating as “Britney Bella,” identified as a Penn State student, sent friend requests to either them or their clients dating back to 2011 when the profile was created. It’s kind of a crazy story.

BILLY PENN LIKES

PHILLY’S MORE FUN WHEN YOU… EMBEZZLE?

Joyce Levitt, the former CFO of Visit Philadelphia, was charged this month with embezzlement and an investigating grand jury put partial blame on Visit Philly, CEO Meryl Levitz and the city for “lax oversight” it says allowed the theft to occur. Had it not been for a reporter for a now-defunct nonprofit news outlet who dug up the story and a district attorney willing to prosecute, Levitt may have never been charged. There have also been questions raised over the years as to how and why Visit Philly exists. Here’s the history — and the controversy — around one of Philly’s tourism institutions.

THE ECONOMY LEAGUE: MEET THE GROUP THAT DID THE PRE-K RESEARCH

Universal pre-K has become the signature goal of the first few months of Mayor Jim Kenney’s administration. For the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia, the subject is old news. This nonprofit began studying pre-K years ago and in early 2014 helped create the coalition Pre-K For PA. When Kenney began publicly discussing the benefits of pre-K, he cited their research. He also touted the importance of exports in his inauguration speech, another subject the Economy League has been studying. For the Economy League, it’s vindication in a way. The purpose of their organization is to address key challenges to improve the Philadelphia region’s future.